Lean Six Sigma (LSS) is important in the economic downturn, according to Richard McCarthy, MD of TLC Global, who chaired the first ITWeb Lean Six Sigma conference at the Sandton Sun this week.
No one is really unaffected by the recession, said McCarthy, who added that while many companies know how to operate in a crisis, some are making bad decisions.
But this is really an opportunity, McCarthy explained. “It's in these times that your process improvement is more important.” It is a time to become leaner and to improve staff performance through clearer roles.
“LSS can steer you out of a bad situation,” said McCarthy. “It educates and manages a problem-solving culture.”
This view was echoed by Richard Aldous, head of sales and marketing at Rethink. "It's become pertinent in the economic crisis to get more bang for your buck," he said.
Aldous, like some of the other speakers, spoke about the differences between Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma, the combination of which spawned LSS.
Lean manufacturing was developed in the 1950s at Toyota and Six Sigma was created at Motorola in the 1980s.
The main difference between them is that Six Sigma focuses on eliminating defects in the process and Lean is about removing waste. Both ultimately involve process improvement, but Aldous says Lean is more intuitive.
He explained that Six Sigma objectives are to shift the process average, reduce process variation and have robust products and processes.
Lean objectives are to improve the process flow and reduce process complexity. The two overlap where they both aim to reduce waste, non-value-added work and cycle time.
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